Trinidad Teen One of Two People Killed at J’Ouvert in New York

Caribbean 360: NEW YORK, United States, Wednesday September 7, 2016 – One of the two young people fatally shot during Monday’s J’Ouvert parade was a 17-year-old Trinidadian, Tyreke Borel.

And his mother said she had cautioned him to stay home, but the teen had insisted on joining the revelry.

“He was just a lovely child who wanted to enjoy the Labor Day. I told him to be safe. But he’s 17. He didn’t want to stay home,” said Alima St. Clair at her Flatbush apartment.

She said police told her Borel was sitting on a bench alone at Flatbush and Empire Blvd. around 3:45 a.m. when he was shot. Police believe he was not the intended target.

A 72-year-old was also wounded in the crossfire, cops said. About 30 minutes after Borel was shot – just a block away – a 22-year-old woman was killed in a separate shooting incident. Tiarah Poyau was shot in the face.

Borel, the oldest of three children, had lived in New York for four years. He will be buried in his native Trinidad, his mother said.

Borel’s Facebook page was flooded with condolences from many of his classmates at Boys and Girls High School.

A woman who identified herself as her cousin shared her grief online.

“I feel so helpless. The most I can do is just remember all the times he was happy and smiling,” she wrote.

“Ty was loved by everyone and he always made people smile and he had a huge heart.” (Adapted from New York Daily News)